Fans can watch the game live on Major League Lacrosse’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/MLL.

Game Preview

The Ohio Machine is back in Selby Stadium this week for “Haines Publishing Night” to face the New York Lizards. This game will be the first time both teams meet each other in the 2013 season. Last year, the Machine lost both games against New York, but is ready to take a victory on its home turf.

Game Night Festivities

"Party on the Patio" - Machine sponsor Amato's Woodfired Pizza is hosting "Party on the Patio" at their restaurant starting at 2 p.m. Fans can enjoy exclusive specials when they bring their game day ticket with them.

"40th Annual Delaware Arts Festival" - Come to downtown Delaware early on Saturday to check out the Delaware Arts Festival where exhibitors will display their hand-crafted work along Winter and Sandusky Streets on May 18 (10 a.m.- 6 p.m.) & 19 (10 a.m. - 5 p.m.). The festival will feature more than 160 booths with media including pottery, paintings, leather, sculpture, jewelry, metal, wood, glass and fiber. Admission and parking is free.

"Haines Publishing Night" - Haines Publishing Night will feature an exciting night for the whole family. Haines Publishing will be distributing exclusive Ohio Machine cinch bags to the first 3,000 fans at the stadium.

"Fan Zone with Games2U" - Bring the family out to our Fan Zone starting at 6:00 p.m. for great entertainment provided by Games2U including inflatables and other great activities. There's something for everyone!

"National Anthem" - Jordyn Stone is a student at Vaughan Music Studios, a music instruction recording facility in Upper Arlington, Ohio.

"Autograph Session with Greg Bice" - From 6:30 - 6:45 p.m., Greg Bice will be available for autographs inside the stadium at the south end of the stands.

"Happy Hour and a Half" - "Happy Hour and a Half" is offered at every home game until 30 minutes prior to face-off. This week, it starts at 6 p.m. and runs until 7:30 p.m. with drink and food specials.

Looking Back

Last week, the Machine took a hard hit from Chesapeake in its first season game on the road. Chesapeake dominated the first half scoring three goals to start the first quarter. Jim Connolly broke the streak and scored the first goal for the Machine. Chesapeake responded with a 7-0 scoring streak, leaving the Bayhawks with a 10-1 lead going into the weather delay minutes before the half was over. The Machine tried to use the break from the weather delay to its advantage and scored four more goals before the end of the game. Due to weather conditions, the officials called the game at the end of the third quarter with a 14-5 Chesapeake victory.

Player Notes

#6 Steele Stanwick – Stanwick made his MLL debut last year on the June 16 game against the Lizards. Stanwick recorded the first three points of his career with two goals and one assist.

#9 Stefan Schroder – Schroder was in goal for the entirety of both games against New York last year. Schroder made 24 total saves between both games out of 58 total shots on goal.

#10 Eric O’Brien – Against New York in 2012, O’Brien won 16 of 30 face-offs during the June 1 game and 5 of 10 during the June 16 game. O’Brien won a total of 21 out of 40 face-offs between the two New York games.

#21 Jim Connolly– Connolly is the team’s leading goal scorer so far this season with three goals, bringing his Machine career total up to 30 goals. Last year, Connolly scored three goals during the two games against the Lizards.

#46 Kiel Matisz– Matisz returns to the field with the Machine for his second season to follow up a stellar rookie year. Matisz played in seven games with the Machine where he scored eight goals and tallied one assist to rank third in Machine rookies for points.

Team Notes

Second Half Momentum –During both games against New York, the Machine was able to keep the score close for the first half, only trailing by a maximum of two goals. Coming out of halftime, the Machine lost their first half momentum and trailed far behind. New York scored 13 goals in the second half during the June 1 game and nine goals during the June 16 game, which gave the Lizards that large, cushion lead.

Two Point Goals – During the 2012 season, the Machine came in second in the league for total two-point goals with 15 while New York ended with 13. Kyle Hartzell, the team’s leading two-point goal scorer, scored a two-point goal against New York last season. The Machine can use its two-point scoring abilities against New York to gain more points and push ahead.

Experienced Defense – Although the Machine is in its second season, the majority of the Machine defense has been in MLL for over six seasons. Ray Megill and Kyle Hartzell have been in the league since 2007, Joe Smith since 2006 and Greg Bice since 2004. On the Lizards, only one of their defensemen has been in the league since 2008, while the rest have three years of MLL experience or less.

Coaches Thoughts

Approach Against New York – “I told the guys we still have 85 percent of the season left and in this league everyone comes back to the pack. We’ll just continue to get better. You can view it from their standpoint; they can dwell on the past all they want but it’s not going to make it any better. Our guys are looking forward to the next opportunity.”

Team Leadership – Guys like Bice, Schmidt, Woodson and Megill have been through the experience – they were great leaders last year. And Stanwick has come into his own this year. We’ve got enough leadership in there so the guys don’t lose perspective on things and keep working together. We have to have a collective identity going forward and support one another, and they understand that’s what it takes to win.”

Connor Martin’s Injury – Martin has been one of our better offensive and most effective players. We thought he was going to be fine, but with a nagging injury it turns out he wasn’t fine. Once he started getting whacked around and trying to change directions we knew he was injured. He got clearance to play from his doctors at home but it’s different running around in an MLL game than doing yoga, jogging and stretching.”

At Face-off – “Possessions are key - it’s like rebounds with basketball, the more possessions you get, the better your chances. We have the opportunity to use both Eric and JJ this weekend. Eric is looking forward to redeeming himself this weekend, as well as the wing guys, and JJ just wants to get back out there.”

Scouting New York

Despite a loss against Hamilton last weekend, the Lizards played tough and remained close to Hamilton throughout the game. New York debuted three players for the 2013 season including Mark Matthews, David Earl and Matt Gibson who all made an impact in the game. But even with a hat trick from Matthews, two goals from Gibson and one goal from Earl, the Lizards were still trailing. Toward the end of the fourth quarter, the Lizards gained an 11-10 lead with five minutes left to play. However, an offside was called on New York, giving Hamilton the opportunity for a two-point goal to put the Nationals back up 12-11 with five seconds remaining. Hamilton walked away with the last second 12-11 victory. New York has Greg Gurenlian, a strong face-off player, who has won 45 of 68 face-offs for the season and 14 of 24 against Hamilton. New York also had six different players score against the Nationals, proving they have multiple options on offense.

Up Next

Next week, the Ohio Machine takes on the Hamilton Nationals on Thursday, May 23 at 7:30 p.m. for “Military Appreciation Night.” There will be a food special for fans including a hot dog, drink and peanuts for $5. Click here to purchase tickets for the May 23 game.